A Werewolf's Kiss
by Sake the DDR Queen
Summary: A SiriusxRemus fanfiction. All characters copyright J.K. Rowling, all happenings and concepts copyright me.
1. Chapter 1

Half past two in the morning, and Remus still hadn't managed to get a wink of sleep; thus the logic of him stealthily slipping out of the boys' dorm to a more peaceful spot. The youth curled up comfortably in one of the many plush chairs that were located within the Gryffindor Common Room, a book in hand and the nearby fire dancing in his eyes. Four days until the next full moon, and the 6th year was finding it rather challenging to hide his anxious, worried manner from the others around him. James, Sirius, and Peter had already taken note of the slight change in behavior, having been expecting and charting the time within their own minds. Even so, the werewolf couldn't help but find himself envying those three; although they had to put up with his slightly negative disposition for a small amount of time each month, they didn't have to suffer from the lack of sleep worrying of what was to come, thinking about what could possibly go wrong if some small slip took place.  
  
Scratch that. They did have to worry. Due to their friendship with the Gryffindor Prefect, Prongs, Padfoot, and Wormtail each had to leave the security of the Hogwarts grounds once a month to accompany the lone werewolf to the Whomping Willow. There, they'd spend the night guarding, protecting, and taking care of the youth, risking their own safety, and possibly lives, to help out a friend. When was the last time that Remus had thanked them for such a thing? Dear lord, it must have been ages; a shame, how little the werewolf voiced his appreciation. He'd have to make sure to assure them of his gratefulness tomorrow morning.  
  
Well, at least the number of people who had to suffer from his ill temperament was smaller than normal. It was winter vacation at the moment, and most of the Hogwarts students had gone home for the Holidays a few days ago. No classes, more freedom… And all the more time to feel miserably restless. Rather unfortunate, too, that the full moon had to fall on Christmas Eve. No doubt the wolfish youth would be feeling miserable the next day.  
  
Sprawling his legs across one arm of the chair, leaning his head against the other, the werewolf opened his book to the last page he had read, allowing the bookmark that had been marking his place to fall swiftly into his lap. As many times as his eyes swept over the same sentence that the youth was concentrating on, though, Remus found himself unable to comprehend its meaning. His gaze may have been skimming over the words, but his thoughts were else where. Making a few more attempts to give the book his attention, the Prefect finally closed the item and placed it atop his stomach, turning his head to the fire. As entrancing as the flames were, they still couldn't manage to redirect Remus's thoughts.  
  
"Hey, Moony, what are you doing up this late?" a voice whispered hoarsely within the youth's ear, giving him reason to jump in his seat and let out a soft yelp of surprise. The speaker laughed quietly at his reaction, and the sound alone was enough to reassure the werewolf that it was none other than his friend Sirius. Breathing out a sigh of relief, Remus turned his gaze away from the fire and towards the source of the sounds, almost slamming his head into Padfoot's in the process. Half of the onyx haired youth was leaning over the back of Remus's chair, his eyes narrowed in a mixture of amusement and concern as he pulled himself up slightly, providing more distance between their faces.  
  
Hesitating only for a moment before replying, Remus managed a slightly sheepish grin, softly exclaiming, as not to awaken those sleeping above, "Couldn't sleep." Gently pressing an index finger against Sirius's head and pushing the other youth away slightly, he laughed quietly and added, "And what about you? I thought you were still up there asleep."  
  
The Animagi was quick to answer, returning the grin with a wolfish one of his own. "You woke me up, mate. One would think that with all the practice the last six years have given you, you'd be able to make a quieter exit," he teased, reaching into the Prefect's lap with one arm and picking up the stray book, still hanging his other arm over the back of the chair casually. "Were you trying to use this to get to sleep?" he then questioned, tossing the book into the air a few times before gently throwing it onto another chair nearby.  
  
"With little success," the werewolf exclaimed in amusement, eyes trailing after the book, watching its movements until Sirius tossed it aside. Only then did his gaze fall to rest upon the dark haired youth that loomed before him, his grin growing into a rather meager smile. "Listen, I'm sorry for waking you up; surely, it wasn't my intention, and heavens know we need all the rest we can get-"  
  
"No worries, Moony," the other interrupted, laughing quietly and gently flicking at   
  
the nose of Remus, everything he did acted out in a teasing manner. "You get the least sleep of us all, and look at how far you've gotten; near perfect grades, Gryffindor Prefect, and we've no doubt that you'll be Head Boy soon…"  
  
Going cross-eyed as he attempted to gaze at the tip of his nose, rubbing gently at the extremity as he did so, Remus softly scowled, "Now Sirius, that's merely done out of hard work and determination. If you three would just put a little more effort and pride into your work-"  
  
Pushing up against the back of Remus's chair casually, the dark youth interrupted the werewolf for a second time. "Oh, now don't give me that bull," Sirius exclaimed admonishingly, although his soft voice was unusually cheerful. "Me and James get along just-"  
  
"James and I-"  
  
"James and I get along just fine with our school work, above average, even, and Peter-"  
  
"Has to cheat in order to get any where. Honestly, Sirius, I don't understand how you guys plan on getting real jobs after we graduate, what with your grades and attitudes towards work-"  
  
"I don't care about any bloody jobs or attitudes," Sirius whispered insistently, his voice containing just the slightest bit of annoyance at this point of the argument. "Why is it that every conversation with you is rounded off into a lecture about grades?"  
  
Flashing the other a slightly pained frown, the werewolf turned away, returning his gaze to its original position upon the dancing fire a few feet away from him. "I'm sorry if I come off to you so close-minded that I'm only able to speak of a single topic, but I do believe you're in the wrong for making such a statement," he exclaimed icily after a few moments of silence, crossing his arms before his chest and putting on a slightly agitated air. He had come down to the common room for some peace and quiet, not to get into an argument with one of his best friends, and such happenings had quickly placed him into a slightly foul mood.  
  
A soft sigh exited Sirius's lips from behind, and for a few moments, the youth remained where he was, carefully contemplating how to sweep away the hurt his words had obviously caused. Finally straightening himself and his position into a standing one, the onyx haired youth wound around Remus's chair and kneeled in front of the other youth, blocking his view of the fire. The werewolf's eyes narrowed dangerously as the other intruded upon his gaze, only to cause a soft, wistful smile to ease upon the dark-haired youth, who softly murmured, "I'm sorry, Remus… I guess I'm just a little tired, you know? I didn't mean to snap at you, and I surely didn't mean what I said."  
  
The Prefect's gaze softened only slightly upon Padfoot's words, and from the look upon his face, the werewolf was attempting to judge the sincerity of the other's tone. Not exactly one to hold grudges, and surely not one to worry about a single unmeant insult, Remus managed a smile for his friend, lowering his voice to a barely audible tone as he suggested, "If you're tired, then perhaps you should go to sleep, Sirius."  
  
The other Gryffindor laughed quietly, sitting down and leaning backwards upon the ground, placing his hands behind him and letting his head roll over his shoulders. Random strands of dark black hair fell before his eyes, of which the youth merely watched dangle in amusement. "I don't want to go to sleep, though," he whined with childlike innocence, obviously pleased that his friend had easily let his outburst fall to rest.  
  
Remus joined softly in the laughter of the other, rubbing his eyes with one fist in a sluggish manner. Just because he couldn't get to sleep didn't mean it wasn't something he wanted, and he once again found himself envying Sirius and the rest of his friends. This bit of silent yearning brought him back to previous thoughts, though, and the werewolf gently pursed his lips, his gaze moving away from his friend and towards the ground.  
  
"Hey, is something wrong?" Sirius questioned softly, bending his head to the side and following Remus's gaze to the ground, as if he expected to find something immensely interesting there. When all his attention met with was carpet, he returned a rather concerned gaze to his werewolf friend. When the werewolf didn't answer, he extended a hand and touched the other youth's nearest shoulder, repeating, "Moony, is something wrong?"  
  
Flinching slightly in surprise, not having expected the touch, the Prefect's gaze jumped upwards and caught ahold of the eyes of his Animagi friend. "Huh? Oh, I'm sorry, Sirius. I was just thinking that… Well, I never thank you guys."  
  
Shoulders bouncing up and down with silent laughter, Sirius gave Remus's arm a gentle squeeze before releasing his hold upon it. "Liar. Just this morning, you thanked James for saving your back from one of Snape's hexes, and you thanked me after dinner, albeit sarcastically, for letting you help me with my homework. You're thanking us all the time."  
  
I thank you all the time because there's always something to be grateful of, the youth mused, although he dared not speak his thoughts to the other. Instead, he merely smiled gently, feeling that the handsome youth before him didn't completely understand his words. "I don't mean thanking you for those everyday things, but instead for what you guys do merely as friends… Especially helping me out each month. It means a lot to me-"  
  
"Aw, Remus, us hanging out with you when you go werewolf every month is great! Thanks to you, we know our way around the school like the back of our hand, along with Hogsmeade, and we have some of the greatest, most unimaginable adventures, and we get to know a werewolf personally, and-"  
  
"And you risk your safety and lives once a month for my casual well being. You guys… You guys don't need to do it, and-"  
  
Sirius continued the series of interrupting in a hushed, earnest whisper. "We do to! We're your friends, Remus, and friends stick with eachother, no matter what. You told us that for the first four years, you'd sit there at night chewing and biting at yourself because you couldn't help it. You think we'd let something like that go on? No, no, we couldn't do that… I couldn't do that." The onyx haired youth paused for a few seconds, biting his bottom lip in what seemed to be hesitation, but he quickly continued on when Remus opened his mouth to reply. "No, I couldn't do something like that… Not when I love you as much as I do."  
  
The werewolf's heart gave an unexpected leap upon his friend's last comment, his yearnings and desires taking it in a way other than his logical side did. Instead of replying the way that his heart wished him to, though, Remus's tongue took another path. "Well, of course you love me! Friends love eachother, don't they? I mean, I love you, and James loves you, and Peter loves you, and we all love eachother back, right?"  
  
Sirius's earnest, almost eager expression quickly melted into a slightly pained way and he turned away, black hair falling before his face and preventing Remus from any further examination. "Yeah… That brotherly, friend love, you know?" he agreed, voice suddenly flat and hollow as he viciously poked an index finger at the plush carpet below him.  
  
Dearie me, what have I said wrong now? the light haired youth questioned himself silently, eyes narrowed in considerable concern. He had intended his words to be reassuring, not harming, but he had obviously gone wrong somewhere. Oh, this was not a good time to be given so much to think about. His head was beginning to pound with a slight headache, and the strain that his lack of sleep was causing brought no more ease to such a situation.  
  
After a few moments of silence and watching Sirius abuse the Common Room carpet a little bit more, Remus grabbed the bookmark that still lied on his stomach and tossed it into another chair before pushing himself up out of his. Placing his arms on his hips and digging his toes into the comfortable material that lay beneath, the youth merely loomed over the onyx haired youth for a few more moments, to no avail. Sighing quietly, Remus sat himself down on the floor beside Sirius, turning his head and giving the other his full attention.  
  
"I guess it's my turn to ask now… Is something wrong, Sirius?" he questioned softly, his voice lower and quieter than it had been yet that night. All he got was a slight shake of his friend's head, and the Prefect wasn't about to accept that as a suitable answer. "Oh, c'mon, Padfoot, mate, if something's bothering you, then just tell me!"  
  
Silence came over the Gryffindor Common Room for a few moments more, the only sounds being the crackling of the fire and the soft breathing of the two 6th years. It seemed as if Sirius was contemplating his answer, and taking quite a large amount of time in doing so. Finally, he murmured in a barely audible whisper, "I already told you. I love you."  
  
Remus let out a slightly exasperated sigh, although made the sound soft enough to where even the youth sitting beside him couldn't hear it. Confusion was hinted in his voice as he bluntly exclaimed, "I don't understand. How can something like that be bothering you?"  
  
The onyx haired youth shook his head and turned away, once again placing both his hands onto the floor, digging his fingers into the carpet in a violent manner. By the way he was acting, Remus couldn't help but feel that he was making things worse, and he was tempted to leave his friend in peace and go back up to his bed. Even so, curiosity nagged, and the youth found that he couldn't let the subject drop at this point.  
  
"Please, Sirius, talk to me. Why is that bothering you?" he interrogated further, his voice soft, eager, desperate, even his expression reflecting his words, although the earnest look upon his face had no effect, since his friend was still turned away at the moment.  
  
Once again, it took the other several moments before he answered. "You described it as a love between friends, Remus, but I know that what I feel is more than that. What I feel for you is more… It's more like this." Without warning, Sirius turned towards the werewolf, leaning forward and lacing his hand behind Remus's head, fingers twining themselves through strands of pale brown hair. Leaning forward slightly, he pressed his lips against those of the other, the whole sequence of movements taking place before the Prefect could do anything to prevent it.  
  
Surprise and confusion flashed across the youth's face, and it took him several seconds before realizing what was actually happening. He did not pull away after he came to the conclusion that this was indeed his first kiss, though, and perhaps that was the most obvious sign that he at least slightly returned Sirius's feelings and emotions. He instead leaned closer, the hand closest to Sirius beginning to move towards the onyx haired youth. Remus had no time to move any closer, though, for the Animagi broke away from the kiss nearly as quickly as he had moved in for it, an intense frown upon his face.  
  
"I-I'm sorry, Remus, I s-shouldn't have done that," he began, a furious blush leaking into his cheeks as he looked towards the ground, strands of hair falling before his eyes, as if purposely helping him not to meet the gaze of the werewolf. He opened his mouth to say more, but the Prefect merely placed two fingers to Sirius's lips, gently shaking his head to and fro.  
  
"Sirius, don't worry about it. Just… Go upstairs and get some sleep, all right?" Remus murmured softly, his expression soft, almost pleading, and his gaze darted towards the stairs towards the boy's dormitory for a split second before returning to the dark haired teen before him. Sirius opened his mouth to retort, but his words were quickly hushed by a simple, dismissing, "Sweet dreams."  
  
Letting out a soft, barely audible sigh, the dark youth pushed himself up from the floor, looking down towards Remus and extending a hand to aid the werewolf in getting up. The Prefect merely shook his head gently, though, and Sirius settled with quietly questioning, "So you're staying down here?"  
  
Nodding his head gently, Remus glanced towards the fire, softly murmuring, "Yes… I'll be here when you wake up." Pursing his lips gently, Sirius's expression became one of slightly reluctant acceptance as he turned his back, walking off towards the stairs towards the boy's dorm. He stopped only once, at the bottom of the stairs, to glance over his shoulder and whisper, "Sweet dreams to you too, Moony," before continuing to his bed. 


	2. Chapter 2

True to his word, Remus was indeed still there when Sirius awoke. Running his fingers through his hair in attempts to rid it of the last few resistant knots, he clumsily stumbled down the circular stair case, mouth open to release a loud, reckless yawn as he moved. Tripping over the last few steps, he made a grab for the rail beside the steps and clung tightly to it to prevent himself from falling. Laughing quietly at his own mishaps, his gaze swept across the Common Room as he steadied his unbalanced figure, looking for one thing in particular. He quickly caught site of it.  
  
His werewolf friend was in the same chair as earlier that night, or morning, to be exact, curled up into a small, tight fitting ball, one hand hanging over the side of the piece of furniture, a book dangling unsteadily from his fingers. Light brown hair fell mussed and tangled before his eyes, lips opened partially as to take in the deep, steady breathes of sleep. The rhythmic movement of his chest rising and falling entranced and enticed Sirius, but he wasn't able to bask in the site of sleeping Remus for long.  
  
"Padfoot, get a move on, why don't you?" James's familiar voice complained groggily from behind, prodding Sirius in the back with his finger. "You're blocking the way, and I need to make a visit to the loo." Glancing over his shoulder and sighing in exaggerated frustration, he flashed his friend a grin before leaping away from the bottom of the staircase. He continued to smooth out his hair, and he couldn't help but laugh as James reached up and mussed his own locks, purposely making his hair messier than necessary.  
  
"In a good mood this morning, eh? You're probably the only one," he continued, words slurred with sleepiness. "Peter appears to be sick and the full moon is almost here. I told Pettigrew not to take your dare. Honestly, telling him to go out into the snow stark naked! He'll sneeze the few brains he has left out his brain before Christmas, I'm telling you." Shaking his head in a helpless, pitying manner, James gave a soft grunt and walked past Sirius, heading off to go to the bathroom and leaving the other in a fit of laughter.  
  
After James had left and Sirius had recovered from his amusement, the onyx haired youth moved over to Remus's chair, peering over the edge and smiling softly at the sleeping form. Unlike many, the werewolf's sleeping form was just like his awakened one; always calm, seemingly gentle, and holding an air of innocence, the Prefect never seemed to change. Who knew what went on within the mind of such a youth? Sirius surely did not, and it had bothered him to no end last night. He had gotten little to no sleep, worrying over what Remus's initial reaction would be when they met in the morning. Well lookie there. The kid's damn reaction was to snore and dream away.  
  
"Should I wake him up?" Sirius thought aloud, stroking his chin in a pondering manner, as if he was deciding his friend's fate. Coughing from behind him broke his train of thought, though, and he once again looked over his shoulder, a bemused eyebrow already quirked.  
  
"You shouldn't-" Cough. "Wake h-him-" Cough. "Up y-y-yet." Yawn. "He pro- pro-pro-" Cough. "I bet he didn't get much-" Very long fit of coughing. "Sleep last night," Peter Pettigrew managed, words muffled by the hand that was covering his mouth during half of his two sentences and snuffled by what sounded like a clogged nose. The mousy haired boy was shaking, a thick, large quilt hanging over his small shoulders. His cheeks were flushed, and his eyes were half closed.  
  
"Morning Wormtail," the youth mused, laughter within his voice, the slightest bit of concern layered beneath his amusement. James was right; his little dare the other night seemed to have done quite the number on his petite friend. "You're looking a little under the weather; shouldn't you be upstairs asleep too?"  
  
"I-I would if I c-c-could, but-" Cough. "I h-have this pounding headache that-" Cough and sneeze at the same time. "W-won't let me s-sleep."  
  
Sirius walked over towards his friend and began to lead him up towards the stairs that led back up to the boy's dorm, smiling reassuringly. "Hey, why don't you wait until James comes back, and then he can take you to the nurse, all right?" he suggested, gently pushing Peter up the stairs. The boy merely nodded, seeming ready to agree with anything at the moment, and finished the way up on his own.  
  
Moving back over to Remus's chair, Sirius pushed his back up against it and slid to the floor, pulling his legs up to his chest and resting his chin on his knees. Peter was right; the werewolf probably got barely any sleep last night, and he should let him rest while he was still capable of it. Even so, it gave the youth that much more time to agonize over his actions from last night.  
  
"What was I doing?" he questioned quietly, shaking his head to and fro, allowing random strands of black to fall before his eyes. It didn't matter; Sirius didn't need to see to know that he had acted stupidly. Sure, he didn't pull away from the kiss, but big whoop! I probably scared him so bad that he couldn't bring himself to do anything, he thought angrily to himself, beginning to gently bang his forehead against his knees. He's gonna hate me for the rest of our lives.  
  
Sirius shook his head in surprise and looked around as he felt his mouth close and his last words echo through the near empty room. I said that. Aloud? Behind him, he heard Remus's body shift slightly, robes brushing against couch, and the youth went stiff. Did he hear me?  
  
The Gryffindor remained silent and still for a moment or two, the slightest twinge of anxious fear resounding within his mind, but Remus made no more movement. "He was just moving in his sleep," Sirius murmured with a sigh of relief. He disliked how jumpy he was being, how nervous and seemingly eager. And it was all his own fault. If he hadn't pulled that stunt last night, he wouldn't be so worried or bothered.  
  
It was only another five minutes or so before James popped up again, the tip of his shoe gently nudging Sirius, who was lost in thought, in the side. "Mate, don't fall asleep. It's morning still," he exclaimed, voice still groggy and slurred. Looking upwards and smiling at his friend, the youth wasn't surprised to see James readjusting his glasses, of which had slipped down the bridge of his nose.  
  
"Peter's upstairs waiting for you. He wants you to take him to the infirmary," Sirius quickly exclaimed, placing on a frown of slight sympathy. "He can't say two or three sentences without bursting up into a fit of coughs that would kill most men."  
  
"Yeah, and it's your fault," James exclaimed, although the comment was made in a teasing tone of voice. Already, he was heading over towards the stairs that led to the boy's dorm. Sirius watched him disappear before pushing his forehead up against his knees again, blocking out the rest of the world. Ignorance truly was a blissful thing.  
  
A few moments later, he heard a couple of pairs of feet walking by, and it was easy enough to identify them as Peter and James. He peeked up for a few seconds to confirm this suspicion before placing his head back into its previous position. It only took several minutes more before the youth fell asleep, exhaustion from the sleepless night claiming him.  
  
"Sirius, what in the world are you doing curled up in a ball right there?" a familiar voice asked from above, jolting the onyx haired youth awake. Blinking rapidly and skittering to push himself up from the floor, his head came in contact with Remus's chin; the werewolf had been leaning over the back of the chair, looking down at Sirius, a most dangerous position. They both let out sharp yelps of pain, the Prefect falling back off the chair and onto the floor, Sirius falling forward and rubbing his head vigorously, as if it itched.  
  
"Good gods, that hurt," Remus moaned from his position upon the floor, stroking his chin and hoping that the contact would not leave an unsightly bruise upon the spot. He began to push himself up, planning on moving to help Sirius up, but his friend moved more quickly than he; the other Gryffindor was already on his feet, moving over to Remus with a hand extended towards him.  
  
Laughing quietly, Remus clasped his hand Sirius and allowed himself to be pulled upwards, any worry of possible markings seeming to have disappeared quite quickly. His head bobbed up and down with silent gratefulness, and as soon as he was steady upon his feet, he released his friend's hand, grinning widely. Out of habit, he began to smooth out the creases of his robes that the fall had caused, although his gaze was locked upon Sirius.  
  
"I'm really sorry about that," the other youth exclaimed hastily, circling once, twice, three times around Remus, as if making sure that his friend was still in one piece. "Are you all right? Did I hurt you? Do you-"  
  
Holding his hands up in the air and laughing aloud, Remus interrupted him, amusement layered within his voice. "I'm fine, Padfoot. It was just a little bump. I do believe I'll live." Even with this reassurance, Sirius couldn't help but fidget, still under the impression that he had dealt his friend some sort of mortal wound.  
  
Shaking his head in a helpless manner, the werewolf patted his friend reassuringly upon the shoulder before turning away and bending down, picking up his book, of which he had dropped when the other had banged into him. Sirius kept his eyes locked upon the Prefect, shifting his weight from foot to foot. Sleep had fought away those anxious, fearful thoughts, but here they were, back to haunt him again.  
  
He doesn't seem that bothered. At least, he isn't avoiding me, he thought in a hopeful manner, placing his hands behind his back and wringing them as Remus moved over to another chair, picking up his bookmark from the previous night. But maybe he's just too nice to mention it. Or too shy. Or something. He's always been really good at hiding his anger; I bet that's what he's doing.  
  
"Listen, Remus, about last night." Sirius began, biting his bottom lip and stopping himself, a slight blush appearing. He hadn't wanted to bring that up! At the very least, Remus was pretending to act normal around him. That comment alone might be enough to ruin it. "Like I said, I'm really sorry-"  
  
"And like I said, don't worry about it," Remus interrupted, back going slightly rigid as he began to slide the items into the large pockets of his robes, still turned away from Sirius. The other Gryffindor couldn't see it, but his lips were pursed tightly, and the faintest tone of pink was beginning to creep into his own cheeks.  
  
"I can't help it; your reaction last night wasn't exactly comforting. I don't know what I'm supposed to think-" Sirius continued on, silently damning himself for persisting upon the subject. In fact, he was tempted to go over to the fireplace and slam his head upon the brick surrounding it. Just like last night, something else, something stupid was acting and speaking for him.  
  
"Then don't think about it, Sirius," the other suggested, his voice faltering as he interrupted once more.  
  
"That's like telling me to stop breathing, to stop thinking completely! It's all I'm thinking about! I'm confused, all right?" he exclaimed viciously, taken aback by the slight violence in his voice.  
  
The werewolf fell silent for a few seconds before heading for the exit to the Common room. "You aren't the only one," he murmured as he brushed past Sirius, looking up for a split second to frown as he walked. "I need a little more time to think about it." He then turned away, speeding up his step slightly before slinking out of the room, leaving Sirius alone to dwell in his miserable, haunting thoughts.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Padfoot, have you seen Moony?"  
  
Sirius glanced up from the quill that he was twirling in his fingers, his eyes little half-slits. Good lord, I'm so tired, he thought, somehow making out the figure of James within his foggy vision. It had been three hours since Remus had taken off, and the youth had been sitting in his chair ever since. Thus far, the werewolf had not returned.  
  
"Nope, not since this morning," he mumbled, shaking his head and returning his gaze to the quill. It reminded him of Remus. Remus always had a quill with him, whether it was so that he could jot things down when he felt compelled to do so, or for the convenience of others. Unable to bare the site of it, he tossed the item aside and turned to the fire.  
  
It reminded him of Remus. Remus loved sitting there and watching the flames dance for him; sometimes he even said that it was a show, just for him. Unable to look at that for too long, he once again diverted his gaze.  
  
This time, his attention rested upon James. James reminded him of James, right? Nope. He reminded him of Remus. They were a quartet, they were all linked together. The four of them were always supposed to be together, right? The site of his messy, glasses-wearing friend merely caused him to feel alone and lacking of a friend.  
  
Sirius let out a low, pitiful moan. Why did all his thoughts have to be about Remus?  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Sirius, mate, I think it's time for you to go to bed."  
  
The youth blinked in surprise, jumping slightly at the sound of James's voice once again, it having awakened him from a nap. Glancing upwards, he saw both Potter and Pettigrew looking down at him, both wearing slightly concerned expressions.  
  
But Remus wasn't with them.  
  
"What time is it?" he managed to murmur, pushing himself up within the plush chair a little. James merely raised a skeptic eyebrow, Peter shaking his head in what seemed to be bemused pity. Each of them grabbed one of his arms, beginning to drag his almost limp form towards the stairs to the boy's dorm.  
  
"What time is it?" he repeated groggily, attempting to shrug the two of them off.  
  
"A little bit after supper time. You've been asleep for almost six hours," James claimed as they walked, releasing Sirius's arm only so that he could move behind him and push him forward. Sirius couldn't help but laugh lightly; the touch upon his back tickled slightly.  
  
"Wow. And what about Moony?" he questioned further, words slurred and mumbled.  
  
"He popped up for dinner, but I haven't seen him since," Peter offered, stopping at the stairs and releasing his friend's arm. James nudged him forward, and Sirius bobbed his head up and down, doing the rest on his own. At least Remus was back. That was good. He hadn't run away from Hogwarts because of him.  
  
Since when had that been a suspicion? Sirius pondered in sleepy amusement, grabbing ahold of the rail tightly and forcing himself to inch his way up the stairs. He grappled for the door leading to the dorm, opened it, stumbled through, and somehow managed to tightly close it behind him. Blinking, he paused for a few seconds, allowing his eyes to get used to the slightly more dimmed area.  
  
Moving towards his bed, the first thing he noticed was the small white envelope that lay near the foot of the piece of furniture. Nearing it, he gingerly picked it up, twirling it in his fingers. It had no name as to who it was from, nor who it was to, but the youth couldn't help but think that the latter was rather obvious. Glancing around the room to make sure no one else was there, he opened the envelope and pulled out a small letter. He immediately recognized the handwriting; it was Remus's.  
  
Dear Sirius,  
  
I'm sorry that it's taken me so long to get this to you. Like I said earlier, I just needed a little more time to think about it. I apologize if I seemed to leave you hanging; it wasn't my intention. I've just found it a little hard to sort out my feelings. Guess you don't need to worry about that, though, now do you? Seems to me like you've already gotten them sorted out.  
  
When I disappeared for the whole day, I made a solo trip to Hogsmeade and picked up a little something for you. I figured that it summed up my thoughts about this whole (slightly awkward) situation. To activate the gift, all you have to do is put this letter back in its envelope. Hope you enjoy.  
  
Forever yours, Remus Lupin  
  
"Forever yours, Remus Lupin," Sirius murmured softly, tracing a finger over the closing of the letter. The mere words sent a tingle down his spine, albeit a pleasant one. Remus was his, and forever his. The werewolf's letter had left him eager and even excited to see what this gift to him was, though. Hastily, he read the letter once more, engraving its words upon his mind before tenderly folding it back up and placing it into the envelope.  
  
The moment he did so, the item jumped from his hands, hovering in the air a foot in front of him. The paper quickly began to fold itself into a complex little shape, the speedy, swift little movements confusing and baffling Sirius. It came to a stop, though, and the youth could tell what it had formed. The envelope had turned itself into a small origami wolf, of which turned to Sirius and let out a silent howl before beginning to run around in the air. It left small, golden footsteps in its trail, and upon close inspection, the youth could see that it was forming a message for him.  
  
I love you too, Sirius Black,  
and as more than just friends.  
  
Sirius smiled softly, managing to read the words six or seven times before they began to fade away. Even so, the origami wolf floated down towards his hand, nuzzling it gently before hovering downwards and resting atop his bed. Its snout opened to form another one of its silent howls before it began to move in circles. After a few seconds, it lied down, placing its head atop its two fore paws and seeming to fall asleep.  
  
"That Moony. He's something else," the youth breathed softly, rubbing an eye with a fist and staring at the air where the cherished message had faded away. Even so, he could have sworn that the faintest tone of gold was still there, and as long as that remark remained true, he was sure it would stay. 


End file.
